


Luck

by kalihiro



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: M/M, Post-Time Skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-02
Updated: 2019-10-02
Packaged: 2020-11-10 17:03:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20855234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kalihiro/pseuds/kalihiro
Summary: With the battle at Gronder quickly approaching, Claude is searching for a way to reunite with his lost love.





	Luck

**Author's Note:**

> so three things!  
one: there are a few lines in here that indicate spoilers that i know are not mentioned in the golden deer route, so if that's all you've played, be warned.
> 
> two: this is a direct continuation of my other dimiclaude thing, losing sleep. i know i couldve just added this as a second chapter, but i liked leaving losing sleep where i did, so oh well.
> 
> three: not necessarily graphic, but there is a part in this where i do describe someone being choked to the point of passing out, so if that is something that could bother or trigger you for any reason, dont read or read with caution!
> 
> other than that i dont have anything except to say thank you for all the kind words on my other three dimiclaude things! i hope u enjoy this one too

"Hello." Mercedes sat down next to Dimitri, the pair on the ground next to the campfire. "I noticed you were still awake, and I was a bit worried."

"I do not wish to speak to anyone." Dimitri growled.

"I understand. However," Mercedes looked over at her friend sadly. "You are undoubtedly going through quite the internal struggle right now with the coming battle. Can I offer you a piece of advice?"

"Not necessary."

"I do not think we should fight the Golden Deer." Mercedes spoke softly, but stern.

"Quit with the house names. We are no longer children."

"I guess." She smiled softly. "But I still mean it. We should be allying with them."

"They are nothing but a group of liars rallying behind a betrayer. Don't speak of them to me again."

"But-"

"I said don't!" Dimitri screamed, startling a few of those around them awake. "If they are to falsely believe that man and stand in the way of me being the one to kill Edelgard, then they are my enemy and I will strike them down as such!"

"What exactly did Claude do?"

"If not for him, I would have never been imprisoned."

* * *

"You should get some rest, teach." Claude turned to her, the older woman remaining quiet and emotionless in the moonlight. Sometimes Claude found it hard to believe that this was really her and not some apparition come to haunt him.

"You as well."

"Not sure if I can. Not really looking forward to tomorrow." Claude sighed, attempting to let out a laugh but failing. "In your time spent in the academy, did you ever find love?"

"I can not say that I did." Byleth closed her eyes and shook her head. "For most of my time there, I had a gremlin in my brain which made it hard to think about such things."

"...I'm gonna pretend I know what you're talking about and move on." Claude looked at her, Byleth's expression remaining as empty as ever, so he wasn't sure if she was joking or not.

"However, I did." Claude bit his lip to hold back tears as memories came creeping up. "I was truly in love with Dimitri. When everything was thrown off track and Edelgard's identity was revealed, I promised him I'd stay with him. I promised him I'd fight by his side. And he accepted."

"I know you gave me a tiny bit of a run down but… what happened?"

"When you disappeared, it was like everyone's lives had changed forever. You were an irreplaceable part of everyone here. It struck Dimitri extremely hard as well. I think he saw you as something between a mother and older sister." Claude glanced over at Byleth, her shock extremely evident. "So, losing you and having his step sister be the probable cause of it, his mental state took an even deeper dive. I knew it couldn't have been easy, and I know that there probably wasn't much I could've done to fix things even a bit, but I can't quit this feeling that _ something _was my fault. That there was something I could've done, but didn't."

"Anyways! About a month after that day, he was called back to Faerghus. He had asked both Dedue and I to accompany him for the journey at least, which I readily agreed to. Upon arriving, things seemed fine. There was a bunch of internal political affairs he was involved in, that he wouldn't tell me about no matter how much I pried." Claude sighed and shook his head. "After about two weeks, he just vanished. Poof. Then… Then they told me he was dead." Claude balled his hands into a tight fist, failing to hold back his tears any longer.

"With Dimitri gone, Dedue and I were pretty much forced out of the kingdom. I made my way back to Garreg Mach and I'm… not sure where Dedue ended up." Claude could feel his chest tighten the more he thought about it. The pain of the memories never leaving. "That was probably _ my _breaking point. I thought I'd lost the both of you forever."

"I'm sorry." Byleth spoke softly. Simple words, but Claude knew how much weight they carried to his dear professor.

"It's alright. I mean, you're both alive! And at least one of you doesn't want my head, so I'd count that as a win." Claude spoke with confidence, earning a confused stare from Byleth. "...I don't know why he hates me so. Maybe he always did, and this was all just a really elaborate way to get me killed someday."

"I think that is far from the truth." Byleth shook her head. "Dimitri loved you very much."

"Keyword being love_ d _." Claude accentuated the d. 

"I believe he still does."

"You didn't see the look in his eye when he told me he never wanted to see me again."

"I think he could've killed you right then and there, but he let you walk out on your own."

"...Maybe you're right." Claude pushed himself to his feet and extended a hand for Byleth. "We leave early."

"I know that you all might find it weird," She continued talking as she grabbed Claude's hands to get up. "To talk to me about such things since I was gone for a period of time and the last time we spoke, the relationship was simply that of teacher and student. But you are all adults now. You have problems far bigger than school crushes and worrying about who to take to the ball. I hope you can all think of me as more of a friend you can talk to."

"Ah, come on. You know we've all always been your friend?" Claude elbowed her lightly, but he could see the genuine look of sadness in her for a moment. "Alright, alright. I getcha, Byleth."

Both of them stood still for a moment, staring oddly at the other.

"On the other hand, I think I quite like being called Teach."

"Yeah, that definitely felt weird."

"Goodnight?"

"See ya."

* * *

"Okay, everyone, follow the plan to a T and we can win this with minimal casualties." Claude instructed.

"We send the professor storming through everyone with her really cool sword while I stand right here!"

"No!" Lysithea shouted.

"Anyways, we're going to split like we practiced. Marianne, you take up the right side and cover healing over there. Fall back if you must, it's most important that you do not die. And same goes for you, Lysithea. Even if the other's get injured, you can heal them. I believe Teach is alright at healing on her now as well. Her target is Edelgard." Claude paused and turned his attention towards the army of blue that was slowly approaching. 

"And Claude's going to leave us mid battle to hatefuck Dimitri." Hilda giggled to herself.

"Hey! It's just a normal fuck for me."

"Can we _ PLEASE- _" Lorenz groaned.

"Yes, yes." Claude cut him off. "Everyone! Take care of yourselves out there. _ And stick to the plan. _"

The Golden Deer and the rest of their army waited for the moment that Claude ordered them onto the battlefield. It felt like ages, knowing what was about to transpire made everyone uneasy, but they had this battle in their grasp. They were going to win this.

The moment Claude laid eyes on Dimitri, he gave the signal. The Golden Deer split off as planned and Claude took to the skies. He carefully aimed for Dimitri's soldiers, taking them down by hitting them in just the legs.

Dimitri caught sight of him quickly and the blonde was less than thrilled to face Claude again.

"...Leave this one to me. Everyone else, advance. Cut down anyone who stands in our way. Edelgard is the goal here." Dimitri ordered, never once breaking eye contact with a now confused Claude.

Claude landed after the troops departed, approaching with caution. The man before him was not the Dimitri he knew once upon a time.

"We need to talk!" Claude shouted.

"You call this an army? We will have you dead before you even have a chance to fight back." Dimitri ignored Claude's words. His voice was low, almost monotone, but he had the unmistakable look of bloodlust in his eye.

"We are not your enemy! We are here to do the same thing as you!"

"You are simply a nuisance who is in my way."

"...What the hell happened to you?" Claude asked, more of a rhetorical question.

"Now is not the time for such discussions." Dimitri produced another lance from within his robe, aiming the tip at Claude. "I presume you will put up quite a fight."

"I don't want to hurt you, Dimitri." Claude's lip quivered, but he still reached for his bow.

"You have always been the weak one between us." Dimitri lunged at Claude, the latter barely dodging in time. The sharp tip of Areadbhar clipped his arm, a huge gash in its wake. He clenched his jaw and fought through the pain as he drew his bow, firing a shot at Dimitri. _ Just one hit… one hit is all I need. _

The blonde's speed had undoubtedly improved. Before Claude knew what was happening, Dimitri had him pinned to the ground by his throat. Claude gasped for air, but even now, he was no match for Dimitri's strength. But still, he wondered, why Dimitri didn't kill him. He could crush his throat in an instant if he so desired, but instead he allowed Claude to keep breathing, albeit difficultly.

"Y-you don't w-w-want t- do this." Claude wheezed, his life flashing before his eyes.

"I have to." Dimitri furrowed his brow and clenched his jaw, but his grip remained the same.

"I prom- promised y-y-ou I'd n-ev-never hurt you." Claude pulled at Dimitri's hands. Dimitri froze, a memory flashed through his mind.

_ "Please! Put up a real fight, Claude!" Dimitri frowned at his training partner. _

_ "I am, I am." Claude shrugged, smiling his usual mischievous grin. _

_ "Claude." Dimitri's frown deepened, but he felt as if his heart might burst. Claude's smile always had a way of doing things to him. _

_ "Okay, okay. I confess. I'm holding back, but don't pretend you aren't either." Claude pointed an accusatory finger at the blonde. _

_ "...I do not want to hurt you." Dimitri admitted. His strength was nothing to be mocked. If he desired, he could crush a grown man's skull with his bare hands. _

_ "And I do not want to hurt you as well. I promised Dedue before I'd never hurt you. Never."_

"What ha-happened to us be-ing a-an unst-o-unstoppable force? Stro-ong enough to ch-ch-chang-e the weather? Th-the flow of the seas?" Claude asked, once more reviving a memory from deep within Dimitri.

"We were children."

"Y-you loved me."

"I was careless!" Dimitri shouted, tightening his grip. Claude's face went red as he was unable to breath at all now. Tears began to fall as he tried to choke out words, nothing coming out, however. He clawed desperately at Dimitri's hands as he kicked his legs violently. "I was naive! I was stupid! And most of all, I was a fool to think it ever mattered."

"I ne-never stopped s-s-searching for you." Claude wheezed. "I-I never gave up h-ope."

"Cease your lies, Claude. I was rotting in a dungeon for years, completely alone because of you!"

"I'm not lying." Claude's attempts to free himself grew weaker and weaker. After just mere moments, his grip faded altogether and he stopped kicking. "Di- mitri…"

"A touching reunion." A familiar voice called out. Desperate for any help, Claude weakly reached towards the voice.

"I will kill you where you stand!" Dimitri screamed, lunging off of Claude and towards Edelgard. She swung her axe quickly, missing him by no more than a centimeter.

"I truly never wanted to make an enemy of you two. I had hoped we could fight together." She spoke sternly, but her words carried a sense of truth.

Claude wanted to hate Edelgard for all she'd done, but just as he could never hate Dimitri, he could never truly hate her. He knew she was being honest. She truly never wanted to fight them like this. But things happen, things change. _ She _ changed.

"Why is it that you two are fighting?"

"I don't care for speeches right now." Dimitri lunged at her once more, the two in a rhythm of leaping and dodging their attacks.

"I am just… curious. Claude's goal has been to dismantle the empire, is that not yours as well? Why kill him? A lovers quarrel perhaps?" She smirked.

Perhaps she was right. Perhaps Claude was right. He should be fighting with Claude.

Dimitri glanced back, preparing to ask for Claude's hand once more to take down the enemy before him. Claude laid motionless, however. His arm still outstretched, but limp. From where he was standing, Dimitri could no longer see the rise and fall of his chest. 

"You did that, Dimitri. You killed him. Even I have enough class to know when it's time for a real fight. But clearly, you're no more than a murderous beast at this point." Edelgard aimed her axe once more.

_ "...I do not want to hurt you." Dimitri admitted. He didn't know what he'd do if he ever Claude. The thought alone made him sick. He felt like the world would end and he'd be cast into hell immediately. _

"Claude von Riegan is no more. And he died by your hands." 

Dimitri fell to his knees. He stared at his hands, the reality of what he had become hitting him all at once. What was he hoping to achieve by killing Claude? Taking out frustration? Sadness? His goal was Edelgard…. right? He was doing all this to kill her, right?

Before he could think any further, the world around him began to spin. His head felt like he'd been shaken for an eternity. No matter where he looked, he couldn't figure out which way was up.

He managed to catch sight of Edelgard, his step-sister following suit and losing her grip on her senses. She, too, fell to her knees, clutching her stomach.

"What… have you done?" Her voice was shaky and her words slurred together.

"Come on now! You can't be giving Dimitri here all the credit for my greatest scheme yet!" Claude hopped to his feet, standing between the two. "You almost had me there. I wasn't expecting to nearly get killed just now. But the surprise is what makes this fun!"

"Wh-at the hell?" Dimitri fell over, unable to focus on Claude.

"In about ten seconds, the both of you will be out so cold you probably won't even hear me get to the end of this sentence." Claude smiled.

"Yo-" Edelgard began. Her words fell short as she succumbed to the same sleepiness as the rest of the battlefield. 

Claude look around, only the Golden Deer remained standing. He pumped his fist high into the air.

"Everyone! Make sure they're restrained now as we carry them back! Dose them again if anyone begins to wake up!" He shouted. Everyone within earshot relayed the message to those around them and so on.

Once everyone from the opposing armies was loaded into the carts, the Golden Deer took a breather.

"If you _ ever _ make me do this much work again, I will kill you for real." Hilda wheezed, wiping sweat from her forehead.

"Oh come on. It felt good to be able to do this, right?" Claude grinned.

"I don't know about you guys, but I feel pumped!" Raphael shouted. He grabbed Ignatz's wrist and held it up high, lifting the smaller boy off the ground slightly.

"Ra-Raphael!" Ignatz stuttered.

"Sorry about that!" He laughed loudly as he set Ignatz back on solid ground. "Let's hurry and get back so we can eat! I worked up quite an appetite carrying everybody back to these carts."

"Why were Leonie, the professor, and I the only girls who had to carry anybody?" Hilda continued complaining.

"Marianne and Lysithea couldn't lift anyone." Claude replied. "And what are you complaining about! What's the point in havin' guns if you never use them?"

"For show, Claude! For show! And for carrying other girls! Not for carrying dead weight in full armour!"

"Yeah, yeah." Claude waved her off. "Now, I'm with Raphael! Let's get back so we can eat and deal with this."

* * *

"Good morning, your highness." Claude smiled as Dimitri woke from the effects of whatever Claude had given him.

"What the hell did you do?" Dimitri growled.

Claude produced a small glass vial from his pocket. "Inside the glass, totally harmless and it looks like water or something. But once you crack it and expose the liquid to the air, it turns into a gas capable of knocking _ anyone _ out." Claude put the vial away and continued. "The arrows were a distraction. It was hard to distract you with them for long enough to get some of these on the ground. But it worked out."

"Wasn't really expecting this, though." Claude pulled down his collar, revealing the bruising on his neck from Dimitri. "But, when you were distracted with that, I was able to throw a few out. Edelgard getting caught in it was a nice bonus. Talk about luck."

"Why did it not affect you?"

"I wonder why…" Claude smirked and Dimitri glared at him. "A simple spell of Lysithea's doing. She made sure none of us would fall under the effects since sporting a mask to protect ourselves would cause concern."

"What was the point of all this?"

"To put an end to it. To everything." Claude walked over, removing the restraints on Dimitri's wrists. "I just want to talk to you."

"What if I try to kill you again?"

"You won't." Claude shook his head. "You looked like you'd gone through seven levels of hell and back when you thought I'd died."

"I-"

"Dimitri. Can you please tell me what happened?"

"I told you. I was naive and stupid and I paid for it."

"You said when I went to see you and again yesterday that this was my fault." Claude clenched his jaw. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't feign innocence!" Dimitri growled. "I… I brought you and Dedue with me because I needed someone there for me. I was dealing with too many things and just having you there was enough. And then _ you _ told Cornelia that _ I _was the cause of my uncle's death! I was thrown in a dungeon and left to rot and the only reason I was able to leave was because Dedue helped me escape!"

"You sure are stupid!" Claude shouted. "You're so stupid! Why in the world would I have done that?"

"Bec-"

"Because what?! Did you already have so little faith in me that you believed I would falsely accuse you of something like that?!"

Dimitri looked up at him, unsure of anything anymore. He could feel something stirring in his chest again as Claude attempted to hold back both tears and words. 

"I'm sorry." Dimitri's voice dropped.

"They told me you were dead." Claude closed his eyes as he continued. "It was when they called you across town to go visit whoever. I was sitting in your room for _ days _ waiting for you. They told me you'd been attacked and bled to death before they could get you back."

Claude crying was a rare sight. It always had been. He never enjoyed making himself vulnerable enough to shed tears, but at Gronder and again here, Dimitri had seen him cry more than he ever had before.

"When I thought I had lost you, that was the worst feeling. It felt like my entire world was ripped from my grasp and disappeared into nothingness and there was nothing I could do about it." Claude continued. "But the whole situation was so… weird, I had done my best to try and find you for _ years _ . I searched _ everywhere _. And then you were finally back and I dropped everything to come see you and you wanted me dead! It was… It felt like the universe was pulling a huge prank on me."

"Where is everybody else?" Dimitri asked quietly.

"Being talked to. Teach is taking care of Edelgard." Claude explained. "I wanted this over with the least amount of casualties possible."

"...You truly had nothing to do with it?"

"Why would I? Is Cornelia not that one who stole everything from you after I supposedly incriminated you?" Claude frowned. "Dimitri."

The blonde looked up at his former lover, the latter staring at him sadly. "We promised that we would do our best to keep from having to kill one another." Claude continued.

"I'm sorry."

"There were many things we could not control. There is still no telling what will transpire from here on out. But I'd like if you were fighting beside me once more."

Claude knelt down, now eye level with Dimitri. "Can you promise me that we can stand side by side again?"

Dimitri held out his pinky once more, earning a chuckle from Claude. "Wha-"

"Aren't we too old for pinky promises?" Claude grabbed Dimitri's cheeks and kissed him quickly.

"No breaking it this time, alright?"


End file.
